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et
/e/
and
J'aime le café et le thé.
I like coffee and tea.
formal
A coordinating conjunction used to connect words, phrases, or clauses of equal grammatical rank.
Il est grand et fort.
He is tall and strong.
Elle a acheté des pommes et des oranges.
She bought apples and oranges.
In French, 'et' is always pronounced /e/ and never elided or contracted. It is one of the most common conjunctions in the language.
Related Phrases
Pro Tip
Avoid 'et' before 'moi' or 'toi'
In French, 'et moi' is correct, but 'et toi' is often shortened to 'toi aussi' in informal speech. For example: 'Moi, j'aime ça, et toi ?' → 'I like it, and you?'
Gold Rule
Never omit 'et' in lists
Unlike English, French does not use the Oxford comma. Always include 'et' before the final item in a list: 'un, deux, et trois' (one, two, and three).
Word Origin
From Old French 'et' (and), from Latin 'et' (and, also), from Proto-Italic '*eti', ultimately from Proto-Indo-European '*éti' (and). Cognates include Italian 'e', Spanish 'y', Portuguese 'e', and Romanian 'și'.
Usage Notes
'Et' is used to join similar elements (nouns, verbs, adjectives, clauses) and is essential for compound sentences. Unlike English, French does not use commas before 'et' in simple lists unless the list is long or complex.
Dictionnaire Français-Anglais